Xu Xinhua watched Lin Xu’s retreating figure with admiration. He’s already so skilled, yet he remains so humble. The boss’s magnanimity is truly worth learning from, he murmured to himself.
Upstairs, the back kitchen staff were having lunch.
Lin Xu approached Zhuang Yizhou and asked, "Master Zhuang, how should one make Stead Egg with Brain so it’s delicious?"
Hearing this, Zhuang Yizhou imdiately put down his chopsticks. "The thod is quite simple," he said. "I could just do it for you."
Lin Xu waved his hand. "No need, no need. Just tell the techniques; I want to practice. I don’t get to work with this ingredient often, so I’m not very good at it."
The two n went over to the stove.
Zhuang Yizhou fetched a basin of water and explained, "Soak the pig brain in water and gently peel off the thin mbrane on its surface. Be careful when you peel it; don’t break the brain."
Pig brain is more delicate than tofu and is covered with an extrely thin mbrane. This mbrane needs to be carefully peeled off before cooking. That way, the brain remains exceptionally tender no matter how it’s prepared. However, one must be cautious during peeling, as the unprotected brain can easily be punctured.
These two pig brains had already been soaking in water for a few hours, which loosened the mbranes and made them relatively easier to peel.
Once peeled, Zhuang Yizhou, who had already prepared so scallion and ginger water using cooled boiled water, took over. He carefully lifted the brains out with his hands, placing them in a clean basin. After draining them slightly, he poured the scallion and ginger water over them, then added cooking wine and Light Soy Sauce, sprinkled so pepper, and began the marination.
"When making stead egg dishes—whether it’s minced at stead egg, Stead Egg with Brain, or abalone stead egg—you should always marinate the main ingredients for a while," Zhuang Yizhou instructed. "This helps eliminate any strong, undesirable taste, allowing the stead flavors to co out much better."
Lin Xu took this to heart. Brains weren’t always available, but minced at was plentiful. He decided he would practice this in private. Then, when his family craved it, he could make it for them as a little surprise.
While the brains were marinating, Zhuang Yizhou beat ten eggs.
"Generally, four to five eggs are just right for stead egg dishes. Too many can make the egg flavor overpowering, overwhelming the natural flavor of the main ingredients, while too few wouldn’t be enough. For two servings of Stead Egg with Brain, ten eggs is the perfect amount."
To make the texture even smoother, Zhuang Yizhou added a little water to the eggs as he beat them, along with a pinch of salt.
After the eggs were thoroughly beaten, the brains had been marinating for about ten minutes.
Zhuang Yizhou carefully lifted the brains out, drained off the marinade, and placed them into the prepared steaming cups. He poured half of the beaten egg mixture into each steaming cup, letting the brains soak in it for a bit. This allowed the brains to absorb more of the egg flavor.
Then, he placed the two steaming cups into a preheated stear that was already producing steam.
After nine minutes of steaming, Zhuang Yizhou opened the stear, and a rich, savory aroma imdiately wafted out.
Slling this aroma, Lin Xu instinctively swallowed. No wonder everyone loves stead egg dishes so much, he thought. The sll alone is incredibly enticing.
Zhuang Yizhou put on gloves and carefully lifted the steaming cups from the stear. By now, the egg mixture had completely set and looked very delicate.
He drizzled seafood sauce into each cup, followed by a little peanut oil, and then sprinkled so chopped scallion on top.
He then returned the steaming cups to the stear.
"After adding the seafood sauce, steam for another two minutes," Zhuang Yizhou explained. "This fully brings out the flavors of the seafood sauce, peanut oil, and scallions, making it even more delicious."
"Why add peanut oil?" Lin Xu asked.
"To make the texture smoother," Zhuang Yizhou replied. "You can also add so lard for a richer flavor. If that’s too much trouble, you could just spoon in so of the seasoned soy sauce used for stead pork ribs. That way, you even save the step of adding extra soy sauce."
So that’s the way to do it... Lin Xu thought, planning to practice diligently when he had ti. He also wanted to explore more possibilities for this dish. For instance, if he added a bit of lard to the egg mixture while beating it, wouldn’t the texture and flavor improve? However, lard had to be used judiciously. Too much would make the dish rich but also greasy, completely overshadowing the tender, smooth, and delicious essence of stead eggs.
Two minutes later.
Zhuang Yizhou reopened the stear.
This ti, the aroma was even more complex. In addition to the original savory scent of the stead eggs, there were now faint notes of fernted black beans, scallion, and hints of seafood and peanut oil.
Lin Xu covered the steaming cups, placed them on a tray, and carried them downstairs.
At that mont, Shen Guofu was still drinking, while Han Shuzhen, Shen Baobao, and Chen Yan were eating the stir-fry hand-pulled noodles delivered by the server.
"Wow, the Stead Egg with Brain is here!" Shen Baobao exclaid as she saw Lin Xu coming downstairs. She imdiately put down her chopsticks and picked up a spoon. "Yan Bao, you can finally nourish your brain!"
Chen Yan glanced at her cousin Shen Baobao’s well-developed Xiongxiong and said sarcastically, "I think *you’re* the one who needs to nourish your brain, and a lot of it at that."
Hmph, that shaless Yueyue, all chest and no brains! And she has the nerve to talk about ? Chen Yan fud internally.
After Lin Xu brought over the Stead Egg with Brain, he placed it on the table and casually lifted the lid of one steaming cup, saying, "This slls so fresh. Mom, you try it."
Shen Baobao scooped up a piece and, without a word, offered it to Han Shuzhen. Her mother was so touched she almost didn’t recognize her own daughter.
When Han Shuzhen tasted it, the soft, smooth egg and the tender brain created a delightful contrast, complented by the savory depth of the soy sauce and the aroma of scallions.
Delicious! This pig brain was truly tasty.
However, compared to the flavor of the Stead Egg with Brain, Han Shuzhen was more satisfied with her daughter’s attitude.
She’s really grown up!
Just as Han Shuzhen was about to praise her, Shen Baobao skipped back to her own seat with her serving of Stead Egg with Brain. "Mom, since you’ve already had a taste, the rest is all mine!"
Han Shuzhen was speechless. The biggest regret of my life, she thought, is not having a second child. If she only had a younger sibling, this brat wouldn’t have been spoiled like this.
Lin Xu smiled and brought the other portion over to his mother-in-law, Han Shuzhen. "Mom, please have this. Let Yueyue and Sister Yan share that one. Dad and I won’t have any; we find the pork head at tastier, anyway."
What a good son-in-law! Han Shuzhen thought. This morning, I bought him clothes worth tens of thousands of yuan while we were shopping, and I thought that was plenty at the ti. Looking back, it seems I bought too little! For such a filial son-in-law, I should have just bought out all the clothes in the mall for him!
As Han Shuzhen contentedly ate her Stead Egg with Brain, Lin Xu leaned over and whispered to Shen Guofu, "Dad, after I make the Crystal Pork Hock tomorrow, I’ll arrange for a courier to deliver so to you so you can try it."
Hearing this, Shen Guofu’s face imdiately lit up with a delighted surprise.
My son-in-law is simply too wonderful! he thought. Just for this, I’ll have to buy him a top-spec Range Rover or a Bentley Bentayga at the end of the year. A BMW X5 is just a grocery-getter; it doesn’t match my son-in-law’s outstanding aura at all!
The re thought of enjoying Crystal Pork Hock in his office tomorrow at noon made Shen Guofu’s heart flutter with anticipation.
Should I pair it with that aged Wuliangye from the cabinet, or should I simply open a bottle of Moutai? Such a difficult decision!
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